


TLM1: When The Closet Door Is Blown Open

by Crazythatcounts



Series: The Little Moments [1]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: F/M, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-04
Updated: 2016-06-04
Packaged: 2018-07-12 03:50:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7084495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crazythatcounts/pseuds/Crazythatcounts
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Part of a series titled "The Little Moments" - each fic in the set is a small drabble about the companions, set in second person. Some are romantic, some are platonic. Some are light, some are more heavy. Each feature a Male Sole Survivor only known as "Blue", and each delve deep into the relationships that form between him and a series of companions. </p>
<p>TLM1: Codsworth is worried about the Sole Survivor. You've come to realize robots are incredibly expressive. Also nosy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	TLM1: When The Closet Door Is Blown Open

You could tell he wanted to talk to you.

 

There was something to be said about the _General Atomics International's_ Mr. Handy bots - with three eyes and no other facial features, they could still be pretty expressive. Most of their ability to emote came from mannerisms more so than facial expression, and you could tell from the way Codsworth had been following you that he wanted something. However, every time you turned to address him, he would busy himself with something else, like pulling invisible weeds, trimming bushes unnecessarily, and on one occasion, wading into the ocean outside your new home with a claim of "filling his reserves" when you _know_ he hated water.

 

You'd built yourself a little bit of a haven on that lonely island out east of everything, and besides venturing out to find a new friend or some supplies, you'd been pretty stagnant there, building houses for everyone as best you could. He'd follow you around every time you were home, and you were starting to think he was _hesitant_ , if a robot could be as much. Building the walls of your new house? Hovering, unhelpful. Introducing a new companion to the rag tag group you'd started to form? Quiet, almost _nervous_. It was starting to wear on you a bit, honestly - it was like he was trying to helicopter mom you from a distance.

 

You caught him, one evening, right after introducing your new companion, R.J. MacReady - affection ally nicknamed Grumps, because he seemed less than happy about the arrangement, muttering something about being hired, not adopted - to the rest of the small crew. Codsworth had been hovering, as always, and while everyone else was trading names and asking questions, you approached. He seemed a little taken aback at your brazen attitude, and even let out a weak "Sir!" when you grabbed a arm and dragged him away from the party. The shoreline was empty, and quiet, and you stopped there, trapping him between you and the water.

 

"Look, Codsworth, what is it?" You asked, with a little too much exasperation in your voice, and he looked almost _embarrassed_. He cast all three eyes away from you, towards the sides and the water, and you realized you'd seen that look when he'd cleaned a little _too_ much - it was shame, dealt from good intent. You grimaced a little, because you never wanted to be that harsh. "I just... you keep following me around like you want something. Just tell me what it is, _please_?"

 

He seemed to shuffle where he hovered, awkward. "I'm worried for you, sir." He said, finally. He watched your face seem to widen in surprise, and spoke again quickly, like he was trying to cover up a mistake. "I just worry about your intentions in bringing all these people home, that's all."

 

You paused. "Codsworth, what do you mean?" You asked, and you feel like your gut starts to twist as you realize what he's worried about. "Do you think I'm... running from something?"

 

"Well, yes, and no sir." He looked earnest, and watched you sit in the sand, hovering next to you. "You see, I know what a few hundred years of isolation did to me, and I dare say the gravity of such loneliness must only be magnified in someone such as yourself. To continue to bring people home seems, at least to me, like you're trying to fill a void left by your wife and son. I'm worried you intend on pursuing some of these ladies, and that you may find your heart broken more oft than not. I'm worried you're trying you replace your wife, and these ladies won't fill her shoes in quite the same way."

 

"Well, Codsworth...." You shrugged, staring out into the sea. He wasn't _wrong_ , really. You looked over your shoulder, and watch Piper wave a little worriedly at you. You waved back with a smile, and she seems to take that as a _I'm okay_ and toddles off to do something else. "I do intend on... attempting to break a few of them out of their shells, _yeah_. And if it goes anywhere after that, I'm not... going to say no." You shrugged again, because that was honestly the gist of your intentions. You weren't going to force romance on anyone, but you could go for just about anyone you'd brought home. Piper's lingering smile was enough to make you sigh almost a little happily, like a love-struck teenager.

 

"You brought them all here with an intent to woo... all of them?" He seemed a little taken aback, and honestly, the idea never occurred to you. What _would_ happen if you managed to woo more than just one? You figured it would work itself out, of course - that only one of them would even fall for you, or that they'd just be okay with you dating more than one of them, or that, if all else failed, you'd just pick one and stick with them, even if you didn't want to. Of course you could just stop at one, but you'd end up in the same rut as before the war, and you didn't want that at all.

 

"Only if they're okay with it, of course." You eventually said, because that's all you could really come up with. Your reply seemed to only make the robot's reaction a little worse, and it wasn't something you honestly thought about before you said it.

 

"Sir, you understand having... _relations_ with other people while in a current intimate relationship is cheating?" He asked like you honestly didn't understand, and you gave him the strongest frown you could manage without looking hateful.

 

"Codsworth, I know you're programmed for politeness and intelligence, but you need to understand something, something they may have specifically chosen to not program into you. Cheating only happens when the other parties _don't know_ what you're doing. Of course, people are gonna tell you that any kind of behavior out of monogamy is cheating, because monogamy benefited a lot more people than polyamory did, and like many other sexualities outside of being straight, it got shafted to the weird and unnatural corner. People had healthy, multi-faceted intimate relationships with multiple people all the time - People like, well... people like me - and just because the world ended doesn't mean that has to have. It's just up to their personal preference." You looked at him, and you watch the gears turning, and after a minute he spoke, and it was soft and slow, like his processors were trying their hardest to understand.

 

"What are your preferences, then, sir?" He sounded almost betrayed, just a little, and suddenly you felt terrible. "If I may be so bold. I feel like I know so little about you now, considering this revelation."

 

"I... I don't know, honestly. I just... I like people. I like feeling loved and loving in return." You leaned back, and there was enough incline to look up at him as you spoke, even on your back. You tried not to sound bitter, but the whole thing came out more like a tirade and less like a confession, but you didn't leave yourself time to feel guilty about it. "I know that when Nora and I first got married, I was involved with other people, all genders, all types. She was... alright with it, mostly. A little more hesitant about it than I was - I think she was worried about what her parents would say if they found out, especially since I occasionally saw a woman or two and to most people that would look like cheating, and I know she was incredibly careful with testing for me and her. She didn't particularly want to see other people, and that was fine. I loved her, and I'd always come home to her, and that was a promise I never broke, not once. And then she got pregnant, and it all sort of... stopped." You felt your throat catch a little, and you didn't want to get upset, but here you were, and there's a part of you that hates yourself just a little more for it.

 

"She wanted me around more, wanted me to be _there_ for her, there for the baby, and she talked like if I kept seeing other people then I wasn't a good father. That I couldn't seek satisfaction from other people and be devoted to her anymore like I used to, that what I was doing was suddenly terrible for her and the baby. So I... stopped. I stopped because even if she hadn't asked me to stop seeing other people, she was constantly needing me around, asking me for things, wanting my company, and I wouldn't have had any time leftover. It was like she was making sure I couldn't sneak around, like she expected me to still see people even after she asked me to stop. And I loved her, I loved her so much, and I loved Shaun, but I felt like... I felt trapped, a little. Like I was reigned in against my will, and held back, and now suddenly there's this freedom I didn't have before and there's people I want to spend my time with. I just... I need to see people again, multiple people, people who can fill different voids and not have to try and change to be something they're not to please me. So if they're okay with it, I'd... really like that, with as many of them as I can." You paused, and he was quiet, and you realized you'd started raising your voice and you went quiet again.

 

"I wish I could have told you, but once Shaun was born she wanted to put that part of my life behind us, like it was history, and just not talk about it. Like if she spoke it aloud, it would start happening again." This sounds the most bitter of all, and you tried so hard not to sound like you blamed her, but in a way you did. She was so happy to have you to herself that she didn't see how trapped you felt. She didn't see that you had too much love to give to just one person like that, and that it wasn't about the sex but about feeling completed in different ways. You don't speak that aloud, though, because you've already ragged on your wife enough, and there's a sharp tang in your mouth after saying what you've already said.

 

"I don't blame you, sir." Codsworth spoke again, and it was still soft. "I do wish I could have known so much about you, though I understand much better now why it is you seek to fill your life with people you care about." He paused, and it was clear on his robot face that he was thinking, and hard. "Do you believe your venture will be successful?" He was honest, and curious, and for a moment your heart sunk.

 

"I don't know, Codsworth." You look back over your shoulder and see the people you're started to bring together - Preston and his bright personality and little whistle; Piper and her michevious smirk and go getter attitude; MacReady and his grumpy frown and sticky fingers - and you realized you already love all of them, but what you feel alone is never enough. "I hope so. I really, really hope so."

 

"I wish you the best on your ventures, sir." Codsworth is right on the moment, a pep in his voice to cheer you up, and you smile, because that was what he was made for. "I cannot speak for them, but if I were not a robot and inclined away from romance, I would find your personality and charm a winning combination and would not give up the chance just because another shares my adoration."

 

"You know just what to say, Codsworth." You smiled, and it was sad, because you wished it would be that simple. But Codsworth was a robot, and humans were always much more complicated than that, and jealousy was not something they'd program into a ball of metal. "Thank you. And thanks for looking out for me."

 

"My pleasure, sir." He seems to smile, and that's good enough for you. At least you can make the robot happy, and that's a start, if nothing else.


End file.
